


Sick of Losing Soulmates

by makebelieveanything



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: A little Kayleigh Day if you squint, Happy Ending, M/M, Separation, Soulmate AU, Time Travel AU, they're all happy in the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:35:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28141743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makebelieveanything/pseuds/makebelieveanything
Summary: Neil has the ability to traverse the entirety of time and space and yet he still feels more alone in the world than ever, that is until he finds his soulmates and figures out what it's like not to be alone.
Relationships: Kevin Day/Neil Josten, Kevin Day/Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard, Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Comments: 11
Kudos: 75
Collections: AFTG Exchange Winter 2020





	Sick of Losing Soulmates

**Author's Note:**

> Gift fic for neil-jortson on tumblr for the AFTG Winter Exchange! I couldn't get all of your prompts in here, but I tried to fit at least a handful of them. I hope you enjoy this, it was super fun to write! I may have to delve into the time traveling idea more again in the future. 
> 
> As always thank you to my wonderful beta Zan for all her help and moral support. Check her a03 out here at [justadreamfox](https://archiveofourown.org/users/justadreamfox). 
> 
> If the attempt at Irish dialogue in the beginning is absolutely terrible someone please tell me, I am not by any means an expert and am simply trying to add some depth to the time period of that portion.

Neil collapsed completely exhausted against the brick wall he fortuitously appeared in front of, barely having enough sense to quickly tuck his amulet away under his shirt - the scalding heat of the metal as it burned away the power Neil had just used barely registering in his spinning mind. He had no idea what place or even time he was in anymore; he’d jumped so many times in the last minute that he’d drained all the power in his amulet and had almost drained his own energy in the process. As it was, he was unable to move from his current slumped position against the hard, wet brick behind him.

Neil closed his eyes and sighed heavily, feeling the chill mist that seemed to be a constant in these sea-side towns slowly soak into his hair and clothes. Wherever he was, he could hear the ocean as it lapped incessantly against a nearby wharf, could smell the tang of salt in the air. All Neil had wanted was to get as far away from that beach in California as possible, had begged to be anywhere but there - where the seagulls screamed, and the waves created a constant metronome reminding him that time was passing, and every second it kept passing meant he was more alone in the world than he’d ever been before. Still, after jumping through at least 10 different times and places, launching himself across the globe, across the entirety of time and space, he’d still ended up by the sea. It was a cosmic joke of epic proportions - and not at all appreciated.

The screeching of seagulls sounded more like laughing now than screaming, and Neil couldn’t stop the tears that left tracks down his grime covered face. He was alone. There was no one left in the world who knew, or cared, who Neil Josten was - or even Nathaniel Wesninski - or Alex, or Stephan, or any of the other names he’d assumed in his lifetime.

He was alone, and he was free, and it was simultaneously the worst and best feeling he’d ever experienced.

A gruff “harumph” from above him startled Neil, his eyes flying open to find an admittedly gorgeous man standing in front of him. He imagined he should have been nervous with a stranger standing ominously over him, should have tensed to run or searched his surroundings for a weapon - but Neil’s body barely had enough energy to keep him alive at the moment, much less enough to fuel his usually hyperactive fight or flight response. Instead, Neil just stared blankly up at the stranger in front of him. Unable to move, and frankly unwilling to give a shit that he probably looked like a drowned rat, Neil watched as the man looked him over, a raised eyebrow his only response to Neil’s general presence.

“Would ya like to come inside?” the stranger finally asked, his voice a rough lilt that was definitely English, but definitely not from the United States. He nodded his head to a doorway, scant feet to Neil’s right.

Neil hesitated for a minute, his instincts against trusting strangers finally putting up a meager fight against his body’s innate need for warmth, food, and sleep. Finally Neil nodded and responded quietly, “Yes, thank you.”

The stranger’s other eyebrow rose as Neil’s accent registered as foreign to his ears, but he didn’t make any comment as he offered a hand to pull Neil up from his slumped position. Neil’s knees shook under his body weight, and he would have promptly fallen back over had the strange man not wrapped his other arm under Neil’s shoulders, taking on almost all of his weight. The man was probably at least a foot taller than Neil himself, but he leaned down easily, drawing Neil’s arm over his own shoulders and helping him shuffle awkwardly through the open doorway and into the warm glow of a fire-lit kitchen.

“Now down ya go lad,” the man said gently, lowering Neil into the wooden chair closest to the blazing fire. Neil watched in awe as the man - who really couldn’t be much older than Neil himself, even for all he called him “lad” - bustled around the tiny kitchen putting a kettle to boil on the stove, pulling tea cups out of the cupboard, and piling a plate full of bread, cheese, and some form of meat. Finally he sat down across from Neil cradling his own cup of tea and asked, “So what’s yer name?”

“Neil.”

“Kevin,” the man said in return, an easy, charming smile slipping onto his face. “What brings a Traveler such as yourself to my humble doorstep?” Kevin asked conversationally, smirking slightly at the hitch in Neil’s breath as he struggled not to inhale his mouthful of tea, or worse, spit it out all over the table.

“How did you know?” Neil demanded once he was able to breathe without drowning on tea. He glared distrustfully at Kevin, watching as his smirk settled into another full smile, this one accompanied by an almost teasing light in Kevin’s brilliant green eyes. Neil knew there were no obvious defining characteristics about Travelers besides the amulet, but his was safely tucked beneath his shirt, a fact Neil had to force himself not to reach a hand up to confirm. Otherwise, Neil’s accent may be weird, his clothes or hair may not fit the time period, but nothing about his persona should really have given away what was the biggest, most closely guarded secret known to man.

“Well, fer one ye popped outta nowhere and slumped against my wall, and ye smell like sulfur and cardamon just like me mam always did when she jumped.”

“Oh,” Neil replied, the wariness leaching out of him as quickly as it had come. He hadn’t even realized when he’d stepped into this time that someone was in the area; he blamed it on the darkness that had started to crowd his vision as he’d burned through all the energy he had left to get himself somewhere safe, somewhere concrete in the viscous blur that was the time-space continuum. Not that Neil had much control over his jumps anyways. He’d jumped all of 11 times in his life total, 10 of those in the last 5 minutes. “Wait, your mom was a Traveler? Doesn’t that mean you’re one too?” Neil asked, curiosity outweighing his ingrained sense to keep his damn mouth shut.

“Yes, I am,” Kevin agreed, stealing a piece of bread off the plate of food on the table that Neil hadn’t yet touched.

“You’re a Traveler?” Neil exclaimed excitedly, immediately forgetting his momentary apprehension. “Can you teach me how to jump properly?”

“I can maybe give ya some pointers, when ya aren’t dead on yer feet,” Kevin agreed amicably, the tone of his voice belaying the tense set of his jaw and the glare in his eyes that spoke volumes about how he really felt about another Traveler almost killing themselves when jumping. Neil must have looked worse than he actually felt; it wouldn't be the first time.

“Aye, well,” Neil huffed, scuffing a shoe against the floor, ignoring the way his accent had subtly shifted to a contorted version of his mum’s old British accent. “I haven’t had much practice. Maybe when I’m feeling better we can go somewhere together?” Neil asked, hopefully, desperately trying to grab onto someone in the world who may actually understand him.

“Can’t,” Kevin replied sadly. “Me mam took my amulet with her the last time she jumped, left me a wee bit stranded, probably fur my own good ye know, but I’m still bitter ‘bout it.”

“Wow, that’s terrible,” Neil replied quietly. “How long has your mom been gone?” Neil watched silently as a somber, wistful look filled Kevin’s eyes before he responded to the question.

“She’s been gone for 10 years now,” Kevin answered eventually, looking down at the dregs of tea left in his cup.

“Does it get any better?” Neil asked quietly, the grief of losing his own mother still fresh in his overtaxed mind, the smell of burning leather and gasoline, the heat of the fire and the California sun scorching through skin as his vision blurred.

Neil never did hear Kevin’s answer though, because his body finally gave in to the stress and grief and exhaustion, and he barely had the grace to set down his tea cup before the blackness consumed him.

\---

Years later Kevin admitted to Neil that he’d seen the far away sadness in Neil’s eyes, had noticed the sweat beading against his forehead from fever and overexhaustion, and had caught Neil before his body could tip fully out of his chair. Neil’s skin had been damp and ice cold to Kevin’s touch and Neil had shivered involuntarily, burning up from overuse and still drenched to the bone from sitting in an alley, in the rain, in the middle of December in Galway.

Kevin even told Neil about the traditional lullaby that his mam had always sung to him when he was sick; a lullaby Neil caught Kevin subconsciously humming whenever he was taking care of Neil. Kevin told Neil about how he had wondered, even then, at how innately _right_ it had felt to have Neil pressed against his chest.

Kevin had continued to hum - the melody one Neil always remembered from the vague glimpses of reality he got through the delirium of the fever. He had tucked Neil snuggly into his own bed and laid a warm cloth on his head to help sooth the chills, and Neil remembered waking to find Kevin asleep in a rocking chair, positioned perfectly so he could keep a watchful eye on both Neil and the crackling fire which had died down to glowing embers overnight. Neil had smiled slightly at the sight of Kevin’s head tilted awkwardly against the back of the chair and fallen immediately back to sleep - feeling safer than he had in years.

\--- Five Years Later ---

Neil skipped happily through the door of what was now his and Kevin’s house, calling out Kevin’s name as the door slammed behind him - but Neil got no response. Kevin was probably down at the wharf cataloging a new shipment of material, so Neil busied himself making tea and picking out some food for their dinner.

It had been five years since he’d stumbled onto Kevin’s doorstep, five years since Kevin had caught him when he’d fainted, taken him in, cared for him, loved him, and trained him how to jump so that he didn’t completely burn himself out every time he tried it - even if he still couldn’t fully control when and where he ended up. Barely less than five years since Neil had realized that the bone deep feeling of belonging he felt with Kevin wasn’t just a savior complex, or a mentor relationship; it had taken Neil 6 months to realize the feeling burning through his gut and clenching at his heart every time he saw Kevin’s messy black hair, his striking Irish green eyes, was love.

Soulmates were something people talked about in fairy tales, something fantasized about wistfully - the idea that someone made just for them was out there waiting to be found. It wasn’t something Neil had thought was real. Yet here he was, staying in a time that was centuries earlier than his legitimate birth year, just to be close to a man he’d only known for five years.

Neil whistled a jaunty tune to himself as he finished prepping dinner and headed into their shared bedroom, content in the warm glow that was domestic soulmate bliss. After swapping out his well-worn work boots for soft socks and slippers and a clean shirt, Neil noticed a letter strewn haphazardly on the bed. He couldn’t pull his eyes away after they caught on the first line: _My dearest son._

Neil felt a fist clench around his heart as he kept reading, had to force the tears out of his eyes as he noticed the splotches of smeared ink on the page, the wrinkles of paper that had been clenched too tightly in angry fists. It was a letter from Kevin’s mom. It didn’t explain how she’d gotten it to him in this time, or why she hadn’t come back, but it did say she thought she was in danger, and that she wanted Kevin to know how much she loved him, how glad she was that he was safe from whatever she was facing.

Neil barely remembered finishing the letter before he was on his feet and out the door - still wearing the house slippers he’d put on minutes earlier. It didn’t take long to find Kevin ensconced in the corner of the nearest pub, clearly many rounds into the bottle of whiskey sitting half empty by his elbow. Neil greeted the barmaid cheerfully, asking after her husband and kids before slipping into the seat next to Kevin, pressing his thigh to Kevin’s - the most public display of support he could show right now. Kevin’s answer was to offer Neil a glass as well, and although Neil had never really been a drinker outside of its uses as a homemade anesthetic, he picked the glass up and downed it in one swallow before setting it on the counter in solidarity.

He sipped on the next glass, alternating between whiskey and water as Kevin finished another three rounds. Finally Neil was able to convince him to go home - Kevin’s arm wrapped haphazardly over Neil’s shoulders, his feet a stumbling mess, the wetness on his cheeks only partially from the rain outside. After Neil got Kevin tucked into their bed and asleep, a full glass of water on his bedside for when he woke up, Neil quickly dug through the dresser until he found his old clothes from his first day with Kevin.

Five years ago, while Neil had slept three days to burn away the fever and exhaustion weighing on him from his jumping spree, Kevin had dressed him in a new, clean, dry (if a bit big) set of clothes and had hand washed Neil’s jeans, jacket, and boots. Now Neil dug out the jeans, shimmying them over his older more toned things, slipping the soft, comfortable jacket over his current gray shirt, and lacing the boots up over his ankles.

Neil didn’t plan on being gone for long, but it was better to be prepared when going into a jump - as he’d learned under Kevin’s diligent tutoring - so Neil grabbed the pack of meager items he couldn’t live without (something he always had packed just in case), checked the fire in the stove, blew out the candle on Kevin’s bedside, and pressed a soft kiss to his beloved’s forehead before stepping out the door into the crisp night air.

Five days later an unmarked package arrived on Kevin’s doorstep - inside was an elaborately engraved amulet that looked like a twin to Neil’s, and a note that read simply:

_I hope this gets to you in time. Having a second token throws off my jumps, so the closest I could get was Budapest. I love you, I will find my way back to you eventually, but until I do - use this to find your mom. It was my mother’s once, and it’s only right it should be yours now._

_Don’t forget about me._

_Yours forever,  
_ _Neil_

\--- Two Years Later ---

Neil pulled his hoodie up over his messy and entirely too long hair, wishing he would have thought to bring something to tie it out of his face. The world around him was dusted in a light covering of snow, and some flakes drifted lazily through the air around Neil - a rarity even in Northern California. It still wasn’t cold enough that Neil needed more than his sweatshirt; a plus side to being a Traveler was he acclimated easily to changes in weather and temperatures. Even though Neil had been in California for over two months this time - the longest he’d spent in any place or time since leaving Kevin - he still felt out of place walking through the suburbs.

Neil hated California. Hated it for the memories of his mother’s death that it inevitably dragged to the forefront of his mind, hated that it was the one place he could always consistently find in the time stream, hated that every time he came back it was a harsh reminder that he hadn’t found Kevin again, hated that his “home base” was here and not with Kevin. (Granted, logically, his home base couldn’t really be another Traveler as they were always mobile and rarely in one place for any length of time, but he still hated it.)

Still, no matter how much Neil hated it, he couldn’t help but come back here, hoping that somehow, some way, Kevin would be able to find him here if he kept coming back. So Neil had bought a small house in the suburbs, in cash, and did his best to spend at least a week there at a time - between jumps - just to make sure the house was still in one piece and not completely rundown from neglect.

Neil was passing the local library, still a good ten minutes from his house, when a short, yet very solid, body walked around the library corner and smacked into Neil. Neil didn’t even attempt to keep his balance, instead doing his best to try and fall in the grass along the sidewalk’s edge rather than the cold cement itself. Turning to look up at the kid who had ran into him, Neil was surprised to see a stocky, young man glaring down at him.

Besides the obvious glare, the young man’s face was utterly impassive, a very practiced mask of detached nonchalance. His body language on the other hand, was something else entirely, and Neil couldn’t help but read the signs he’d learned early in life; this language was ingrained in Neil - a survival technique he’d learned from a mother who didn’t want him and a father who repeatedly tried to kill him. He saw the wary agitation evident as the blond man’s head ticked just slightly to the side as he stifled the gut reaction to look over his shoulder, not willing to take his eyes off the potential threat in front of him; fear clenched in the man’s fists as the knuckles turned white from the pressure, even though his hands never left his sides - relaxed and ready for anything; impatience fluttered through his legs as he subtly shifted his weight on the balls of his feet. Finally, Neil recognized the exhaustion that had settled like a permanent companion in the bags under the man’s eyes, the tense set of his shoulders, the slightly hunched posture, the barely observable shivers that slid under his skin - something Neil knew all too well from pushing himself too far.

Maybe it was Kevin’s kindness still rubbing off on him after all these years, but Neil wanted badly to offer the guy a refuge; one of the empty guest rooms in his house. Let him take a hot shower, get some warm food, maybe a change of clothes - and clearly much needed rest - but he had no idea how. Socializing still wasn’t his strong point.

Finally the man broke the silence for him.

“Are you going to get up?”

“Haven’t decided yet,” Neil answered honestly. “If I do, will you punch me or just run away?”

The young man’s glare, if it was possible, became more forceful - Neil was sure if there was power in such things he might just wither away on the spot.

“Potentially neither,” was the man’s answer.

“That’s not exactly reassuring,” Neil responded lightly, pushing himself to his feet anyway, brushing futilely at the cold, wet patch on his pants where the small dusting of snow had melted into his jeans.

“What are you running from?” Neil asked conversationally as he straightened out his hoodie, subtly making sure his amulet was still tucked safely on its chain around his neck.

“Nothing,” was the curt reply.

“Okay,” Neil said placatingly, eyeing the backpack the man was wearing and the black trash bag of what looked like clothes. “But, you’re clearly on your way to somewhere, or away from somewhere, and yet you’re still standing here talking to me. So my guess is you have nowhere to run to, am I right?”

The blond didn’t answer in words this time, just a tightening of his mouth and the defensive crossing of his arms - an action that only drew more attention to the large bag he was carrying. Neil took it as a yes.

Fuck it, he may as well offer. Worst case the guy blew him off and went on his way. Neil couldn’t be responsible for all the misfits in the world.

“Alright then, you’re almost dead on your feet, and - no don’t glare at me, I’ve been in that position too many times to count, I know I’m right - so if you’ve got nowhere to go, then you can come back to my place. I don’t particularly care what you are or are not running from, and I won’t ask, but I have a guest bedroom, hot water, and plan on ordering copious amounts of take out.”

“And in exchange?” the man asked warily.

Neil shrugged. “I get the peace of mind knowing I didn’t leave a complete stranger to drop dead ten minutes after meeting them, and you get some hot food and a marginally safe place to get some rest. Doesn’t have to be anything more than that,” he replied.

For all Neil could read the physical reactions in the man’s body language he couldn’t get a good read on the guy himself. He seemed completely unaffected, yet simultaneously like he was balancing on the edge between surviving and falling apart. The man was a perfect stranger and for all Neil knew he could try and kill him in his sleep, but something told him to offer, so Neil had offered. He wouldn’t force the guy to accept help he didn’t want.

“My name’s Neil by the way, you can follow if you want, we’re maybe ten minutes from my house,” Neil finally said when it was obvious no answer was immediately forthcoming, and he turned to continue on down the street.

He was shocked when after a couple beats he heard a second set of footsteps and the voice behind him responded simply with, “Andrew.”

\---

Andrew ended up staying that night just as Neil had offered. After a hot bath, some dry clothes, and a stomach full of Chinese takeout, Andrew had shuffled up to the guest bedroom and locked the door. Neil fully expected him to be gone by the time he woke up the next morning.

Except he wasn’t.

When Neil woke up he stumbled his way into the kitchen - pondering if it was worth the effort to scrounge up some eggs and bacon for breakfast or just eat the cold leftovers from the fridge - and stopped dead in the doorway when he found Andrew standing in front of the stove flipping pancakes. (Neil wasn’t even aware he had the ingredients for pancakes.)

“You’re still here,” Neil said dumbly.

“Obviously,” Andrew responded drily, not bothering to turn around.

“Right, good, great… fuck I need coffee. It’s way too early for this,” Neil muttered, rubbing a hand over his face in exasperation. After this many years spending every couple days in a new place he’d really thought he’d gotten better at conversing with people; clearly he was wrong.

Andrew pointed towards the counter, and Neil noticed a freshly poured cup of coffee sitting by the chair he’d sat in the night before, so Neil sat down and sipped at it while he waited for Andrew to finish with the pancakes.

“I didn’t know I had stuff for pancakes,” Neil finally mused as Andrew poured the last of the batter into the pan and placed half a stack in front of Neil.

“You didn’t, I went out before you woke up,” Andrew responded.

“So why’d you come back?” Neil asked, surprised. “Not that I have a problem with you staying, but you didn’t seem to be particularly thrilled with the idea last night. I thought you’d be long gone by the morning.”

“I wasn’t going to,” Andrew admitted as he flipped the last pancake onto the stack next to him, turned off the stove, and joined Neil at the countertop.

After he’d drenched his pancakes in what Neil believed was an abominable amount of syrup, Andrew glanced over and added, “I realized I really had nowhere else to go, so I went and bought stuff for breakfast. A meal for a meal.”

“Okay, so then we’re even now, yes?” Neil asked casually, starting to get the impression that Andrew’s life ran on exchanges, specifically equal exchanges, as if he needed to know what was expected so he could plan for the worst. It was a trait Neil was all too familiar with, one that Kevin had tempered when he was around. That thought made Neil’s heart ache - the phantom pain like he was missing a part of himself.

Andrew nodded minutely in response to Neil’s question as he shoved a bite of sugar covered pancake into his mouth. In that moment Neil sent up a wish to Kevin, wherever he was, that he help him make the right choice, say the right thing. Neil could feel it in the air like he had when he’d woken up that first morning tucked safely into Kevin’s bed - something tugging at the edges of his awareness; a heightened sense that the decisions made in this moment would potentially change his world forever.

So Neil did what he always did, he jumped.

“Okay, then I propose a new deal,” Neil said, taking another long, fortifying sip of his coffee before continuing. “The truth is, I take a lot of trips and I’m only in the house for maybe a couple days every few weeks. I really need someone to be here to watch after the place. So, how about you stay here for however long you want, and in exchange you watch over the place, make any minor repairs, keep people from stealing my things, take care of the lawn, etcetera. Thoughts?”

At first Andrew simply stared at Neil, face suspiciously void of any response, and Neil held his breath hoping he hadn’t pushed too far. Finally Andrew pursed his lips before saying, “You’re willing to let me just stay here? Are you unbearably naive, or just incredibly stupid? You don’t know anything about me.”

“It’s probably a mixture of both of those to be honest,” Neil responded, laughing slightly at his own expense. He knew this was a ridiculous, absolutely absurd long shot, but that nagging feeling wouldn’t go away, and Neil knew better than to fight against the pull of the universe.

“One more stipulation though, before you make up your mind,” Neil added, seriousness creeping into his tone. “I won’t ask who or what you’re trying to get away from, if you don’t ask where I go when I’m not here.”

Neil waited, finishing his breakfast, drinking the last of his coffee, getting up and washing his dishes, all the time internally thinking Andrew would say no - and yet, still hoping he would say yes.

“Okay,” Andrew finally answered, startling Neil away from his internal reverie.

“Yes? Okay, awesome, perfect…” Neil cut himself off before he went overboard with the excitement. “First things first, keys.” Neil headed for the junk drawer, riffling around until he found the spare set of keys he’d made in case he ever found Kevin again. Neil hesitated for just a second, the unbidden memories bringing a sharp sadness with them, but he pushed them aside and handed the keys over to Andrew.

Eventually Neil had to move on; he had to keep living his life. If he ever did find Kevin, the other man would probably slap him upside the head when he saw his current lost puppy dog routine.

“Right then, I was planning to stick around another day and then I’m off again. Questions?” Neil asked, hands shoved into his sweatpant pockets.

Andrew just shook his head, and Neil wasn’t entirely sure if he was still surprised at the turn of events, or if he was just naturally that silent, but the stoic behavior was a nice buffer for Neil’s wayward thoughts.

They spent the day in mostly companionable silence, Neil resting on the couch either reading a book or messing around on his phone, waiting impatiently for his amulet to fully recharge so he could head out again. They ate the leftover Chinese for dinner again that night, and Neil waited until Andrew had gone up to bed before he slipped into his bedroom, changed into what he now deemed his Traveler’s outfit, and headed out the door. He stopped for only a moment to leave a note and his phone number for Andrew in case of an emergency - silently hoped there wasn’t an emergency as Neil wasn’t sure the phone would work while Traveling anyway - then he slid quietly out of the front door, took a deep breath, and jumped.

\---

For the first four months Neil was gone from the house far more than he was there, usually stumbling in the door right before dinner, sleeping for a day, then heading back out the next night. Per their agreement, Andrew never asked where Neil went, or why he usually came home weary and covered in dirt, or sand, or drenched to the bone even when it was drier than the pits of Hades outside. In return, Neil didn’t ask about the armbands Andrew never took off, even in the depths of California heat waves, or about the late nights when Neil’d be getting ready to leave well after Andrew had gone to bed only to find the other man sitting on the porch smoking a cigarette in the moonlight.

It was an easy routine, and Neil couldn’t deny he enjoyed coming home and finding home cooked food in the fridge, and something other than stale crackers in the cabinets. As the months dragged on, Neil started spending more time in the house between adventures. Andrew eventually picked up a job working nights at a bar called Eden’s Twilight, so Neil would get up, go on a run, make himself some breakfast, then sit down with a good book and wait until Andrew pulled himself out of bed. Then they’d spend the afternoons exploring the city they’d both lived in, but never really cared to see.

Being with Andrew was almost as easy as being with Kevin had been. They fell into a routine just as easily as he and Kevin had, and Neil felt guilty. But as the time without Kevin grew longer and longer, and the time Neil spent away from Andrew became shorter and shorter, Neil couldn’t help but feel a little bit grateful, lucky even, that he’d found two people to love in his life.

Eventually Neil even confided in Andrew, bits and pieces at first, then full stories, of his life with Kevin, and his life on the run before that, even about his Traveling powers. Andrew listened to all of it, and gave Neil some secrets in return. He told Neil about his childhood in foster care, about the trauma of his past, about the scars he hid under those armbands. And Neil kept those secrets close to his chest, knowing that Andrew understood as well as Neil the importance of secrets like theirs.

And finally, Neil started to piece himself back together again.

\--- Three Years Later ---

Neil raced frantically down the quiet neighborhood sidewalk in California, the scarf he’d bought to fend off the chill in London flapping haphazardly behind him as he ran up his front steps - slamming through the front door. Neil didn’t even bother to kick off his shoes as he stumbled through the kitchen, up the stairs, pulling open doors as he went.

Everything was empty: the shared bathroom, Andrew’s clothes in the closet, his computer from his desk.

Andrew was gone.

Neil had received a text just over 10 hours ago. He’d been in a pub in London listening to a drunk scientist ramble on about time travel, and mutants, and the existence of superpowers. Most of it had been absolute bullshit, but Neil still listened raptly to any stories he could find about time traveling - always trying to get more knowledge on Travelers, anything that could help him find Kevin. He hadn’t felt his phone vibrate at first; Neil was admittedly terrible at checking it anyways. The only person who had his number was Andrew, and getting messages was always sporadic at best when he was jumping.

Neil just so happened to pull it out to check the time when he’d seen Andrew’s message almost three full hours after it’d been sent.

**Neil, I have a twin. A fucking twin. So, I probably won’t be here when you get back. Sorry for the text, I know you’re out. I don’t know when I’ll be back, so keys are under the loose brick on the porch.**

And then a second message, as if Andrew hadn’t known how to say goodbye.

**I’ll miss you.**

Neil finally slumped down at the bottom of the stairs, staring at the messages on his phone again. He should probably say something back, should probably ask how Andrew found he had a twin, should wish him luck with his family, but Neil couldn’t seem to get his fingers to move. Somehow, after five years without Kevin, and three years with Andrew, Neil had started to feel comfortable again - and then the world had gone and blown it all to hell.

Neil knew what the text meant, especially that last one, it meant _goodbye_ , it meant _thanks for being there for me until I found my real family._

It meant Neil was alone, again.

And to top it all off, it was a week before Christmas, and Neil couldn’t help the bitterness that flooded through him as he realized he would probably never get to spend another Christmas with Kevin or Andrew again. It had been three years with Andrew, and still Neil had spent at least half of it jumping across the centuries looking for his other soulmate, hoping against all logic that they would somehow be tied to each other, or that their bond would magically overcome the vast barrier that was the entirety of time and space. It hadn’t worked, obviously, and now Neil had lost another soulmate. He knew if he wanted to he could find Andrew - at least Andrew was still in the same year, probably even on the same continent - but he’d chosen to leave, and Neil had to respect that.

Besides, he reasoned, if Andrew had wanted him to come with, he would have asked. He knew Neil could get there in seconds, but Andrew hadn’t even left an address. So Neil resigned himself, yet again, to spending another Christmas alone.

Christmas time always brought with it a sense of longing and nostalgia. It was a time Neil couldn’t help but remember all the good years with Kevin, but since he still couldn’t bring himself to truly regret having left Kevin in the first place, the happy memories were lined in melancholic retrospection.

Neil knew he’d been taking a huge risk going back for his mother’s amulet all those years ago, but getting back to California hadn’t actually been the hard part. It turned out Traveling with another amulet meant double the amount of control necessary to find the time and place he was aiming for. Even though Neil didn’t draw on the other amulet’s power, it still offset his jumps enough that he’d ended up in the deserted savannah of Africa, then some small island off the coast of South America during a civil war, fucking Greenland in the depths of winter in what Neil guessed was sometime in the 10th century (Neil fucking hated Vikings), and then finally Budapest - thousands of kilometers and the entire Irish Sea away from Galway and Kevin and home, but only hours later than when he’d originally left.

Neil hadn’t been willing to risk trying to jump again knowing he could just get further away, so he’d packaged up the amulet - his mother’s most prized possession - and paid a courier the obnoxious sum he’d requested to get the amulet shipped as quickly as possible back to Kevin. Neil had of course tried to jump to Kevin directly after he’d left the other amulet behind, but he’d underestimated the toll jumping with two amulets had taken on him and he’d burned out and ended up back in California, barely alive.

Neil hadn’t found Kevin since.

But Neil had learned from his time with Andrew that drowning in his sorrows wasn’t going to make him feel any better, so Neil sent up a prayer - to the gods, or karma, or their soulmate bond, or fucking Santa Claus, whatever was out there in the vastness of the universe - that Kevin was alive, and safe, and happy, and Neil wished that he’d find him again soon. Then he sent up another one hoping Andrew had found the family he’d always wanted, that he was safe, and happy, and that Neil would maybe selfishly get to see him again someday too.

Then, resigning himself to the knowledge that no Andrew meant no food in the fridge, Neil pushed himself up from the stairs to go on a hunt for somewhere still open that was serving food at this hour. Neil trudged back to the front door, hanging his unneeded scarf on a hook near the door, too lazy to change out of his Traveling clothes, and opened the door to find the impossible.

Kevin.

Alive and standing on his doorstep, black hair mussed like Kevin had spent all day absently running his fingers through it, his green eyes still stunningly captivating, and Neil barely gasped out his name through the fog filling his brain.

“Kevin?”

“Neil,” Kevin breathed, almost reverently, his voice still the deep baritone Neil heard in his dreams, but the accent had thinned down to a barely noticeable lilt.

“ _Kevin,_ ” Neil sobbed, letting himself collapse into the taller man’s arms, wrapping his arms in a vice grip around Kevin’s neck - knowing he was probably holding on too tight, and still entirely unwilling to let go. Kevin didn’t complain though, he just folded his long arms around Neil, hugging him just as tightly.

“I’m here, Neil. I’m here,” Kevin repeated softly. It was a mantra, and Neil wasn’t sure if it was meant for him or for Kevin.

Neil pulled his head away from where he had buried it in Kevin’s chest, using his hold on the back of Kevin’s neck to pull him down into a desperate, frenzied kiss - both of them pouring all of their frustration and loneliness and undying love into that one moment.

“How?” Neil finally gasped out, trying to pull air into his lungs and unable to form a full sentence, not really knowing what exactly he wanted to ask first if he did.

“The amulet,” Kevin replied, sounding equally as wrecked as Neil, but Neil didn’t particularly care since he was alive; he was alive, and he was _here_.

“I found my mom, it’s a long story, but I got her safely back to Ireland, and for a while I stayed, hoping you’d be able to make your way back, but you never did,” Kevin explained, hesitating slightly at the end.

“I tried,” Neil interjected quickly, “fuck, Kevin, I never stopped trying. Once I could jump again, I tried, but I couldn’t get back, everytime I tried it was just black and darkness and I’d end up back here again.”

Kevin’s grip tightened around Neil at that, cheek coming to rest against the top of Neil’s head. “I knew you wouldn’t break your promise, but hearing you say it out loud makes it real. You really didn’t mean to leave me?”

“No, never.”

Kevin was silent for a time, his steady warm arms still wrapped securely around Neil, his hands rubbing soothing circles over Neil’s back. It took a bit for him to find his words, but finally he continued telling Neil what had happened since they’d parted.

“Eventually I decided there must have been something blocking you from getting back to me, so I went looking for you, and I ended up all over, but always seeming to be one step behind you. I couldn’t figure out why I never caught up, why I felt like I was just chasing after the breadcrumbs of your existence. I’d been using my own amulet - I got it back from my mom when I found her and it was easier to use than your mother’s. I don’t know why, but controlling my own was as instinctual as it had always been, so I hid your mom’s in Ireland. Anyways, last week I returned to Galway, dug out your mom’s amulet, and without a destination in mind, without trying to pick a time or a place, I just thought of you and jumped, and I ended up here.”

Neil pulled away from Kevin to get a good look at his face, refusing to let go of the man completely, but intent on memorizing every detail of his face now that it existed again outside of just his memories.

“Just now you mean?” Neil asked, staring searchingly into Kevin’s green eyes. “You jumped, and ended up on my doorstep, just now?”

Kevin nodded.

“Kevin, I literally just wished that you’d come back to me. Like I threw up a prayer to the fucking universe or whatever hoping I’d find you again soon,” Neil said.

Kevin stared at him, clearly as much at a loss for words as Neil himself was, and then suddenly he started shaking, sucking air into his lungs as tears streamed down his face and giddy laughter bubbled out of his throat.

“So I guess soulmates really do exist,” Kevin finally said as the laughter subsided, the tears still slowly falling from his eyes.

“I will never doubt again, not that I will ever let you go again either,” Neil responded quietly, sliding his hands up to cup Kevin’s cheeks, wiping away the tears with his thumbs. “You’re mine, forever.”

“Forever,” Kevin agreed, and he leaned down to kiss Neil soundly, softly, gently. A kiss that spoke of the elation of finally finding each other again after all this time.

\---

Having Kevin back was like a miracle Neil had never truly believed he would get. When he woke up in the middle of the night convinced it was a dream, it only took him seconds to register the heavy, warm arm tucked around his middle, and the steady breaths that ruffled the hair at the back of Neil’s neck.

Kevin was back.

They spent the days leading up to Christmas getting Neil’s house decorated, just like they’d always done in Galway. They pulled out the fake tree Andrew had bought Neil three years ago when they’d spent their first Christmas _together_ , and Neil started telling Kevin pieces of what he’d been up to the last five years besides chasing down leads that could help him get through the darkness that had been blocking his way back.

Neil poured his heart out to his soulmate, knowing that no matter what happened, Kevin would always be there for him. And Kevin understood; he knew the power that was a soulmate bond, and he didn’t begrudge Neil for having more than one. He just listened quietly, then pulled Neil into one of his tight, comfortable hugs and it felt like coming home again. Neil knew the ache of missing Andrew would last for awhile, it may never go away - it definitely hadn’t with Kevin.

Besides comforting hugs, and fingers wrapped together as they lounged on the couch, Kevin did what he always had, he showed Neil how much he loved him, and how much he’d missed him, in small gestures that Neil hadn’t realized he’d been missing until they were there again. Kevin kissed below Neil’s right ear when he snuck up behind him; his fingers trailed along Neil’s back or down his arm as they passed each other in a room; he made Neil’s favorite breakfast of biscuits and honey; steeped Neil’s favorite tea in a way only Kevin knew how.

Fuck Neil had missed him.

\---

Finally Christmas Day rolled around. Neil and Kevin opened the small gifts they’d found each other, then spent the majority of the day curled up together on the couch. The Christmas lights twinkled slightly on the tree, one lone present still sitting underneath it addressed to Andrew. They were watching one of the classic Christmas movies that played all December long when Neil heard a key turn in the lock, and suddenly the door pushed open and in stepped Andrew.

Andrew. Alive and happy and carrying his two bags of belongings just like he had that first day Neil had given him keys.

Andrew barely made it in the door before Neil was off the couch and sprinting towards him. Neil hesitated for just a brief moment, not wanting to jump on Andrew if he wasn’t ready for it, but the blond opened his arms invitingly and Neil dove in for a hug, only slightly less violently than he’d hugged Kevin not days earlier.

“You came back?” Neil asked, his voice muffled in Andrew’s shoulder where he had hidden his face so Andrew wouldn’t see the tears slipping out of his eyes.

“Of course,” Andrew responded easily, as if that was the most obvious answer.

“But what about your family? What about your twin?” Neil asked confused, wiping angrily at his tears so he could pull back and look Andrew in the eyes.

“They live in South Carolina, I went for a visit, then I came back,” Andrew answered, as if it was that simple, that obvious.

“But you gave the keys back, you took all your stuff with you,” Neil accused, starting to get frustrated. There was no way he’d misread all the signs. Andrew had said goodbye, he’d given back the keys, he’d left Neil.

“Neil, I barely have enough stuff to last me a week. It all still fits in these two bags and I didn’t want to steal any of your clothes in case you came back and needed them. And I left the keys in case you lost yours again like you did two months ago in Chile.”

Neil stared at Andrew, blinking slowly, trying to wrap his mind around what he’d heard.

“So you aren’t leaving? You said goodbye…” Neil finally muttered weakly, unsure why he was still arguing as if having Andrew back was anything other than a second miracle.

“I said ‘I’ll miss you’ that is not the same thing,” Andrew retorted, giving Neil his patented “ _you’re an idiot_ ” look.

“Oh,” Neil breathed, completely at a loss for what to say next, having completely forgotten that they weren’t alone in the house until Kevin came up behind him, his fingers trailing along Neil’s lower back - just like normal.

“You must be Andrew,” Kevin said solemnly. He stood at Neil’s back, but still managed to loom over both Neil and Andrew.

“I am, and you are?” Andrew asked his face going noticeably impassive, his tone getting perceptively darker.

“Oh, fuck, Andrew, this is Kevin.” Neil hurried to explain, telling Andrew how he’d rushed back from London thinking Andrew had left (Andrew huffed at that, but let him continue), and how he’d wished for both him and Kevin to be safe and happy and come back soon and then found Kevin standing on his doorstep.

The story sounded like something straight out of a fairy tale: time traveler makes a wish on the universe then finds his long lost soulmate on the front porch of his house, then barely a week later his other soulmate unexpectedly returns home.

If Neil wasn’t so abundantly happy, he probably would have cringed at how cliché it sounded.

But it really didn’t matter. Kevin was here with his hand tucked firmly in Neil’s, and Andrew was by his side on the couch with his perpetually cold feet tucked up under Neil’s thighs. Neil knew it might take some time for Kevin and Andrew to feel the connection Neil knew existed between the three of them, but he also knew that now that he had both of them back he was never letting go.

It was like everything had clicked into place, all the pieces of Neil that he’d been leaving all over the globe, all the breadcrumbs he’d left across the centuries, they all snapped into place - with Kevin on one side and Andrew on the other - Neil was finally in the exact time and place he was supposed to be in.

“Merry Christmas,” Neil said happily, laughing at Andrew’s amused huff and the small kiss Kevin pressed to the back of his neck.

Merry fucking Christmas indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> I accidentally tried my hand at some minimal angst in this one, hope y'all liked it! 
> 
> Hit me up with comments, kudos, or on tumblr if you wanna chat at [makebelieveanything](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/makebelieveanything). Thank you for reading! (:


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